Coyotes captain Shane Doan was in his usual spot on the ice Monday, surrounded by teammates while leading stretches in his first full practice since he was diagnosed with Rocky Mountain fever earlier this month.

But don’t expect Doan to be in the lineup for tonight’s tilt with the Edmonton Oilers, which is the beginning of a seasonlong six-game homestand for the Coyotes.

“It’s not if he can get through practice and the skate,” coach Dave Tippett said. “It’s what happens after that. The other day he skated for a little bit in the morning in Anaheim and slept four hours in the afternoon. He skated for an hour for us today. If he sleeps 10 hours later today, that’s probably not a good sign.”

Doan is on injured reserve, and the Coyotes still don’t have a timetable for a potential return. The Coyotes recalled winger Chris Brown on Monday to give them 13 active forwards on their roster, but winger Rob Klinkhammer missed Monday’s practice with a “touch of the flu,” Tippett said.

Klinkhammer, however, is expected to play tonight, and defenseman Rusty Klelsa also seems to be nearing a return. Klesla, who’s been dealing with an illness, practiced Monday and is eligible to come off injured reserve today.

Brown’s addition gives them an extra body while Doan continues to build up his endurance.

“I felt good. I felt really good,” Doan said after practice. “It’s one of those things that I’m excited to get out there regardless of how it goes.”

Doan certainly didn’t look out of place in Monday’s practice, but the speed of the game isn’t usually captured in practice. He has to adjust to that, find his hands and have the energy to do both.

“Being off three weeks, it’s tough on the body,” he said. “Being off and lying down and not really doing much and fighting whatever it is, it makes it hard.”

Doan is no longer taking antibiotics, but doctors still aren’t sure how he got the bacterial disease that affects the cells that line blood vessels, causing them to leak.

“It’s one of those things it takes a while for it to kind of incubate, I guess,” Doan said. “The bacteria that they got rid of was something that they’re not totally sure exactly which strand it is, and they’re just trying to figure that all out.”

Doan may not be ready to play, but the Coyotes should be encouraged by a return to home ice where they’re 10-3-3. The Coyotes have grabbed points in five straight games, but they hope this stretch of home games will produce more two-point results.

“It’s scratching and clawing to keep ourselves in the game, which are the positive signs of it,” Tippett said. “The other side is you’d certainly like to be winning games outright.”

The overtime and shootout losses have been hard to swallow for Doan, whose offense the Coyotes have clearly missed. Despite missing the past 10 games, Doan is still tied for most goals on the team with 12.

That speaks to Doan’s strong start to the season but also the hole he’s left in the offense. Before he was sidelined, the Coyotes were averaging 3.14 goals-per-game. Since then, they’re at 2.4.

“You’d wish it doesn’t happen, but at the same time, we’re in a playoff spot right now,” Doan said. “Hopefully I’ll come back and help out eventually and when I do, hopefully I can give us a little boost.”

Note

Forward Gilbert Brule, who was assigned to Portland of the American Hockey League Sunday, refused to report and has been suspended, the Coyotes announced Monday.

Tuesday night’s game

Oilers at Coyotes

When: 7 p.m.

Where: Jobing.com Arena.

TV/radio: FSAZ/KTAR-AM (620).

Oilers update: The Oilers have earned points in three straight games, which ties their longest point streak of the season, but they’re still in the basement of the Western Conference standings with 13 wins and 30 points. They’ve had trouble against the Pacific Division this season, going 2-7-2. The Oilers have scored a power-play goal in three straight games, but the unit ranks 24th overall at 13 percent on the road. Winger Taylor Hall has a team-best 35 points. Winger David Perron leads the Oilers with 16 goals. Goalie Ilya Bryzgalov has a .918 save percentage and 2.80 goals against average.

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